


a cold in summer

by wubling



Series: Camp Sanders AU [4]
Category: Sanders Sides, Thomas Sanders - RPF
Genre: Camping, Catching a cold, Children, Crushes, Crying, Domestic, Drama, Falling In Love, Flirting, Fluff, Friendship, Getting Together, Human AU, Hurt/Comfort, Kissing, M/M, Makeup, Summer Camp AU, getting sick, painting nails
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-04
Updated: 2017-11-04
Packaged: 2019-01-29 01:49:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12620424
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wubling/pseuds/wubling
Summary: When Virgil discovers that Roman's taken a sick day, he takes it upon himself to check up on him after the camp day is over.





	a cold in summer

**Author's Note:**

> These new parts keep getting rougher to write...shouldn't be too long until the end now though! The camp was only supposed to go on for a week, after all. But who knows, maybe I'll have some side stories? We'll have to see how that plays out.
> 
> Thanks to everybody's sweet comments on the last entry! I'm too shy to respond to them but I read them all and they keep me motivated to write! ^_^

Virgil came in late that morning. A mixture of his usual oversleeping and not being able to catch a bus to the area made him burst into the cabin with a cup of coffee nearly spilling out of his hand. He only just barely missed the morning meeting and it seemed the only other counselor that wasn't there was Roman. Virgil breathed a sigh of relief. As soon as he walked inside, Patton urged the kids to get into their groups for their first activities. Virgil hurried to the kitchen to start the first batches of popcorn.

For awhile, the day was uneventful. Virgil had plenty of snacks to go around. The kids were relatively well-behaved. The DVD player was running smoothly. It wasn't until near the end of the day that Virgil realized the groups were a bit larger than normal and only three had visited the cabin instead of the usual four. He also realized that after hours of working, he still had seen no sign of Roman.

Thomas headed straight for the kitchen when his group arrived. He stood by the doorway as typically instructed, but he waved excitedly to Virgil when the counselor looked his way. "Virge! Popcorn?"

Virgil snickered. "Three bags today. Special treat since we had a lot extra. Don't tell Patton."

Thomas practically squealed, "Aw, yes!" and was handed one of the bowls. He popped a kernel in his mouth. "So where's Roman?" he asked.

Virgil paused. "...He really _didn't_ come in today, huh?" His fingers tapped impatiently on the counter. Roman wasn't really the type of person to take a day off out of the blue. At the same time though, the groups seemed to have been divided up efficiently, meaning that Patton or Logan had been given advance notice.  
Virgil decided he would ask Patton later. For now, he still had campers to watch. He assured Thomas that Roman would be back soon and ushered him into the movie area.

Popcorn beginning to be passed back and forth, Virgil allowed himself to sit on his dresser and enjoy some quality film with some quality kids. 

* * *

Logan was taking extra time to get himself collected at the end of the day. This meant Virgil had a few minutes to talk to Patton before he would be driven home.

Patton tended to stay a little longer than the other counselors when he could. He made sure everything was in tip top shape before he went out. He was asked about this early on, to which he replied, _'Wouldn't want the campers to come back to a mess, now would we_?'

Virgil approached him that day with a sense of urgency. "Hey, Patty?" he called as he finally got nearby.

Patton whipped around to greet him. His typical smile was there, stretching as far as the eye could see. "Afternoon, Virgil! How did the movie go?" he asked.

Virgil shrugged. "Eh. Normal. I needed to ask you about something though." Patton nodded, returning to his previous task of dusting furniture, so Virgil continued. "Was...Roman not here at all today?"

Patton gave Virgil a sympathetic look. It was small, but it was enough to be embarrassing - Virgil felt a blush creep in. "He called in sick. That's all," Patton explained.

"Oh...is he home alone though?"

"Well, probably. I didn't exactly ask..." Patton sat on this train of thought for a minute. "Maybe...Maybe you could go check up on him! Or you and Logan, since he's the one driving and all."

"I wouldn't mind dropping you off and picking you up later in the night."

"Jesus!" Virgil spun around. Logan had practically materialized behind him, all of his belongings in place and ready to go. "Don't scare me like that! Could've given me a heart attack!"

"Actually, I believe a shock as mild as that one would require you to have a preexisting heart condition before you would-"

Virgil huffed. "Nevermind! Nevermind...but would you really do that? That'd...be really cool..."

Patton giggled. "Aw, Lo, you sweet boy! Helping in the spread of love!"

"L-Love? Patton, y-"

"I'm simply offering Virgil transportation. Any possible romance is up to him and I am not aiding in it any significant amount."

Virgil sort of hated when Logan was smiling the way he was then. It was a bit knowing, like he usually looked when he was reciting facts or correcting people, but it was also a little bit playful. Virgil knew his anxiety was simply getting the better of him, but he couldn't help but feel like the joking around was at his expense. So he did what he thought he was the best at doing: he got bitter.

"Then can we just go already? It's getting too late in the day for this." He briskly walked out to Logan's car. He looked over his shoulder once he reached the door, saw Patton's concerned look, and kept leaving. He could apologize later.

Logan, of course, didn't seem to take that as an option. It wasn't long into the drive to Roman's house that Logan tried asking about it. He was certainly inexperienced with this sort of thing, but simply asking, "Did we do something to make you mad?" seemed like a fine idea.

Virgil took a couple of deep breaths, in and out. "I...guess? More like uncomfortable. Which turned into anger." He pursed his lips. "Can I start over?"

"No need, I understand. Apologies."

"Accepted." A silence fell between them. The subtle classical music playing helped, but Virgil was still feeling a bit guilty. "Jeez...I'm sorry too. You're not good at reading emotions and I'm a bit too good at...projecting them." He curled in on himself like he was hiding. "I've been trying so hard to get a hold of myself but I don't think I'm getting much better."

"You're trying your best, yes?"

"Wh...yeah? I guess."

"Then you're doing fine. Don't worry so much, Virgil." Logan gave him a side smile that looked a bit fake, but was oddly comforting anyway. "And just because I'm not emotional doesn't mean you can't be."

Virgil was quiet for awhile. It wasn't until Logan began to pull into Roman's driveway that he chuckled. "You've been spending more time with Patton."

Logan rolled his eyes. "Very funny," he grumbled.

"Whaaaat? I'm proud of you if anything. To be honest, I didn't think you'd ever-"

"Out of the car. Text me if you need a ride."

"Probably will 'cause buses are gross." Virgil climbed out, stopping before closing the door. "And uh...thanks, Lo. I...really appreciate it."

This time Logan's smile was very real, clear as day. "Good luck with Roman."

Virgil slammed the door shut. He stepped back a few steps and watched the car drive away. Once it was out of sight, he took a few deep breaths. Then, once his nervousness had died down a little, he approached the front door. 

* * *

Roman hated having a messy space. Knowing where all his materials were was an important part of his creation process. He knew some artists that had supplies strewn across the room, and writers that constantly lost pencils and pens in their sofa cushions, but Roman simply couldn't abide by it. This was one of the many annoyances that came with having a cold: he had no energy to clean the tissues and the blankets and the lord-knows-what-else he'd pulled out of place since that morning.

Another annoyance was the headaches. When Roman heard his doorbell ring, it felt like someone had stabbed his head with a huge needle. He nearly whimpered as he tried to stumble out of bed. Then came a few quick knocks on the door. Whoever was there seemed urgent and Roman couldn't help but not want to keep them waiting. He shuffled as fast as his legs would allow and answered.

Of all the people he'd expect to stop by, Virgil certainly wasn't one of them. His darker co-counselor practically pushed him aside and scurried into the house, quickly pulling a box of tissues and a bottle of liquid medicine from a bag on his shoulder. Roman raised an eyebrow at him before coughing violently. 

Virgil sputtered, "Oh god, cough drops. Did I forget the cough drops? Did the cabin even _have_ cough drops?"

"What are you-" Roman coughed some more. "What are you doing here?"

"Well Patton told me you were...he said you were sick and asked that I come over to check on you." Virgil crossed his arms over his chest. He couldn't quite look Roman in the eyes. "I tried to bring over some of the stuff from the cabin closet but there wasn't a whole lot for colds."

"Oh. Um...thank you?" Roman said. "I was just about to take a nap though. You can-" A harsh cough. "You can head home if you wish."

Virgil pursed his lips. "You sound awful," he stated rather bluntly. He paused to think, looking at the door every few seconds, but ultimately decided to start rummaging through Roman's cabinets. "I can make soup for you at least. Got any soup? Or pots for soup?"

Roman shrugged. "I believe there's a couple ramen packages in the pantry. Maybe chicken noodle. I'm...not sure." He watched Virgil collect the materials for chicken noodle soup while leaning against the wall. He hadn't been up and about for most of the day so his head was really starting to kill him. He grabbed a tissue from Virgil's box and blew his nose. "Is this all you brought?" he asked sheepishly. "Have anything for headaches?"

"I usually bring painkillers around with me. First pocket on the front."

"Much appreciated."

After swallowing one of the large red pills, Roman found himself being led into the living room. Virgil practically shoved him onto the couch. He had the remote nearby at least, but Virgil warned him not to get up unless absolutely necessary. Then he disappeared back into the kitchen. The only other signs of him being there at all was the sound of the stove going and the occasional clink of a spoon against a soup pot. 

* * *

Though he remembered waiting for the soup to be ready, Roman didn't remember falling asleep. He wasn't sure for how long either. He barely even knew what time it was in the first place - he was just surprised to find Virgil still in his house, sitting beside him. It seemed that the younger counselor had poured out soup for the both of them. While Roman's was sitting on the coffee table looking a bit cold, Virgil was sipping some from the rim of his bowl, nearly finishing it off. There was also a cup of water on the table, accompanied by a small plastic container of the inky purple cold medicine from the cabin.

As soon as Roman laid his eyes on the medicine, he winced. "Please don't make me take that."

Virgil tensed up at the sudden awakening of his co-worker, but quickly shrugged it off and returned to staring at the muted television. Some sort of dateline show was playing in the background with the closed captioning on.

"You're gonna take it," Virgil said. Roman opened his mouth to protest more, but there was clearly no room for arguing. As he watched Roman shotgun the medicine, Virgil smiled slightly. "Good. Here, take the remote, you can put on whatever."

Roman looked as excited as one can be while sick. He quickly switched to some cartoon channel Virgil didn't recognize at first glance. Sighing contentedly, Roman leaned back into his curled up sleeping position. Virgil shifted a bit to accommodate it.

"How did you get here anyway, Virgil?"

"Logan drove."

"Hm."

Virgil quickly sensed the tension there. If he was honest with himself, it frustrated him - why were they still fighting? Sure it had only been a day or two, but their arguments were usually petty. Virgil never saw them lasting longer than a few hours. But as much as he wanted to confront Roman about the feud, his mind kept assuring him that it would make matters worse.

Throughout the cartoon's airtime, Virgil, when he wasn't thinking too hard about his cousin's argument with Roman, absentmindedly poked around on his phone. Roman, on the other hand, simply watched his show intently. His eyes dropped every now and then, but he was determined. He refused to lose focus. This was a good episode, gosh darn it.

After awhile, Roman could feel the cold medicine beginning to kick in. His aches and pains were subsiding a tad. Even his headache wasn't nearly as piercing as before, but replacing it was a certain drowsiness he couldn't quite place. He was tired, but couldn't sleep. His mind was foggy, but not enough to make him act loopy. Everything was just...slightly off. The taste of the medicine was bad enough without this nonsense. The cartoon wasn't distracting enough. He needed something else to focus on.

Roman looked back at Virgil. His dark purple bangs were hanging just in front of his eyes. Not quite enough to hide them from a side view, but enough to obscure them. Such a shame, Roman suddenly thought, as those eyes were very pretty. His pale face was accentuated by the flood of freckles he used to try so hard to hide. Virgil's bored expression was so fascinating to Roman because he hardly ever saw it. Anxious or angry faces were common for Virgil. Maybe with the occasional snarky grin, if he was having a particularly good day. This expression though...Virgil looked so relaxed for the first time Roman had seen. He just stared at his phone, blinking slowly, lashes fluttering...

"I keep staring at your eyes," Roman blurted. Virgil was taken aback by the outburst. There went the calm look; back again was his usual worry. "I don't...mean this to be strange. I just..."

Virgil chuckled nervously. That eased Roman a bit. "Might be the mascara...Ever since Patton and Thomas gave me that makeover, I've...tried new stuff. I guess."

Roman quickly sat up. "Like all of the new stuff? The blush and the nail polish too?"

"Jeez, where'd that energy come from?"

"Don't change the subject!"

"I-It's not everything! Just...lighter foundation I guess? A-And I've tried wearing lipstick too, but not in front of the kids, I-I feel like it'd freak them out."

In trying to explain himself, Virgil almost didn't notice Roman hopping to his feet and stumbling out of the room. He opened his mouth to scold, but soon Roman was back with a small clear bag. Inside were a few bottles of nail polish of varying colors and brand names. Roman plopped back down on the couch. Cross-legged, he gave his knee a pat. Virgil hesitantly placed his hand on it.

"What color?" Roman asked. He sounded so excited that Virgil didn't want to decline his offer, embarrassed as he was. "I've got red and gold and blue and-"

"Purple?"

Roman looked up at Virgil's face. Virgil could see a twinkle in his eye and his heart jumped. "Of course! Purple really suits you, you know."

Virgil reached up to play with his dyed hair. "So I've heard..."

He found that Roman, despite not having a table to work on and having a cold, was pretty good at painting nails. Roman occasionally painted his own, not often enough for him to be an expert, but certainly enough to not make a huge mess whenever he tried. While working, Roman kept opening his mouth as if to speak before shutting it again. It was getting to the point of annoyance to Virgil; why wouldn't he just spit it out?

"I thought you didn't really like the kids, to be honest."

Virgil frowned. "What?"

"No, no, I mean..." Roman paused his painting to awkwardly shift around in his seat. He thought carefully for another minute before beginning again. "You said at the start that you weren't good with kids...that you didn't even want to be there. I thought for sure camp was torturing you, even with Thomas there, but you just said you were worried about spooking the kids. And for the record, I'd bet they'd _love_ to see you in makeup."

Hearing this, Virgil suddenly felt his eyes water. He didn't know why he was starting to cry. One moment he was fine and the next he had tears running down his cheeks. Roman quickly took notice though and carefully closed his nail polish, putting it aside for a moment. He lifted Virgil's painted hand with his own. He blew on the nails delicately. Virgil watched and sobbed a bit harder.

"You don't...have to tell me, I suppose," Roman whispered. "I certainly didn't expect this reaction but I swear to you that I will be patient with you. Now, please give me your other hand." Virgil obliged. He absent-mindedly blew on the nails himself and Roman grinned, picking the polish bottle back up. "Good."

Virgil hated having a lump in his throat. He gulped a few times and wiped tears on his sleeve. "Roman..." His voice quivered in his sigh. "Camp Sanders...means so much to me. I-I couldn't hate it, not since I met all those kids, not since I met you and Patton an-and Thomas. I regret saying that stuff."

"Did you want to come here though?"

"Of course not. Have you met me? I'm an angry ball of angst." Virgil snickered, despite himself. "I'd never have been a camp counselor for children if I didn't have to...I was just lucky Logan signed up with me. I...kinda thought I'd feel alone except for being around him. The group work concept scared the heck out of me."

Roman sneezed and sniffled a bit. He allowed Virgil to blow on the second hand while he reached over for a tissue. Virgil had stopped crying at least. That put Roman at ease, which was really nice considering the aches were starting to come back and dealing with two miserable counselors under one roof couldn't be good.

Virgil admired Roman's work, stating, "These are beautiful, Roman."

"They certainly are. Beautiful nails for a beautiful boy," Roman replied with a wink. Virgil looked away again. "But in all seriousness, if I may ask...why exactly did you have to work there? Was someone forcing you?"

Virgil laughed some more. "If by 'someone' you mean 'the government', sure. Whatever. It was either this or a more traditional sentence."

Roman pursed his lips. He half expected Virgil to laugh some more, maybe elbow him or something. But Virgil just stared at the wall on the other side of the room. He looked utterly ashamed. "You're...not kidding, are you? Was this part of a community service obligation or something?"

"I'm surprised no one told you. The other employees are supposed to be aware, but...I guess Patton took the papers and kept my secret for me. Man, I love that guy." Roman stared in shock. Virgil glanced back at him for only a second. "God, don't look at me like that! I'm not dangerous or anything! If I were, they wouldn't let me around kids at all!"

"What in blazes did you do, then?"

"None of your business! Just...trust me, alright? I-I was trying to do the right thing, I swear." Virgil grabbed Roman's hands desperately. He was starting to sob again. "I _swear_."

Roman huffed out a breath. Then, slowly nodding, he interlocked their fingers. "...Okay, I trust you." He was hyperaware of their closeness now. Their held hands were one thing, but Virgil's face suddenly seemed so close. He must have sat right beside Virgil when he began painting and now they were nearly on top of each other to comfort one another. He giggled and mumbled, "This...isn't how I saw my sick day going."

Virgil stared. He spent a few seconds processing everything. When he pulled one of his hands away, Roman's face quickly shifted to a concerned expression, but as soon as he realized Virgil was just wiping a few tears, he was able to relax again. Virgil laughed at this. Then they were just looking at each other. Virgil took a deep breath and leaned a bit closer.

Roman gulped. "I'm...still sick, you know."

Virgil blushed and replied, "I don't really care." Then he closed the gap. 

* * *

"You kissed him."

"You _kissed_ him!? Virgil, I'm so so proooooud!"

Virgil groaned dramatically, sinking into the car seat. "Logan, you didn't tell me Patton was on speaker phone."

His cousin rolled his eyes. "I can't very well hold my phone to my ear - safety takes priority." His gaze only softened when he returned his attention to Patton. "Speaking of which, I really should minimize distractions and I'll need to speak with Virgil. May I call you after he's home?"

"Works for me!" Patton exclaimed. "Talk to you then!"

"Mhm. Goodbye."

Despite the frustration, Virgil couldn't hold back an amused smirk. "See ya tomorrow, Patton. And uh...sorry for storming out on you guys earlier. I felt...teased, I guess."

"Aw, don't worry about it, kiddo. Happens to the best of us! Have a good night!"

The car radio beeped a few times before starting to play the classical music station Logan tended to leave on. Logan glanced at Virgil, who seemed content to stare out the window and not speak. "So...kissed Roman, huh?"

"God, I dunno why I even bother telling you guys these things."

"I'd prefer that you did though. I like to know what's going on in your life."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it."

Virgil began tapping his foot rapidly. Logan noticed it and let out a resigned sigh. "Virgil..." he said cautiously. "...would you feel better about this development if I made up with Roman?"

The tapping stopped for a moment. "Would...Would you be able to?"

"The main point of contention here is that Roman believes I don't care for him and that I am ungrateful for his help. Therefore, I simply have to prove that this is not the case."

"How?"

"I'm not sure. I'll think it over tonight - perhaps Patton will have an idea."

Virgil crossed his arms. "And why haven't you done it already?"

"I haven't seen him all day, you know that." Virgil nodded in understanding before dropping his arms. After a few seconds of silence, Logan pursed his lips. "To be frank...I wasn't sure I believed Patton when he said Roman was sick, I thought he was just..." When Logan looked to Virgil then, his face had an expression that Virgil rarely ever saw on him. Normally blank, Logan now looked sad and worried. "...He _was_ sick, wasn't he?"

"Of course, why would Patton lie to you like that?" Logan looked back at the road, biting his lower lip. Now he just looked flustered. "You...feel guilty, huh?" Virgil guessed.

"I...shouldn't."

"Dude, you hurt Roman's feelings. You can feel guilty about that and still try to fix it. What was it that you told me earlier? That it's okay to be emotional?"

"But I'm not. Well, not typically, anyhow. I-It's not like I've never felt emotions, but they've never been this...debilitating." He pulled into a driveway and squinted at the address on the side of the house. "Here we are. Text if you need anything."

"Yeah, yeah. Oh, by the way," Virgil said, tapping at his phone. "I just texted Patton to talk to you about all this since I'm not gonna be able to."

"V-Virgil!"

"He's the one that knows what to say, alright? I don't want you to be thinking about this all night. Make a plan with him and tell me about it when you pick me up tomorrow...assuming I don't sleep in again."

"...Your alarm is set, yes?" 

"Mhm. I-I'll try to get up this time, don't worry." Virgil gave his cousin a fond smile. "Goodnight. Good luck."

Logan returned the sentiment. "Have a good sleep, Virgil." Once Virgil had safely gotten into his house, Logan reversed the car and began driving towards his own residence.

Just as he was leaving the street, his car radio rang. He tapped the screen and Patton's contact name and picture popped up. "You dropped him off?" he asked delicately.

Logan nodded, though Patton obviously couldn't see it. "Yes, I did," he assured.

"Alright, good. I'm glad he's home safely...Did you...wanna talk?"

Logan sighed. "Y...Yes, I should talk. We have a lot to discuss."

"Then I'm all ears." 

* * *

As the night turned to morning, the sun rose into the sky, shining its light into Virgil's curtain-less bedroom window. He awoke to his alarm ringing and a splitting headache, but the sudden light exacerbated the pain. He hissed and buried himself under his covers. Virgil must have sat in this shivering form for a solid ten minutes before he heard his phone buzz, getting a text from Logan to come outside soon. Virgil checked the message and sneezed, immediately launching himself into a coughing fit. He growled at himself.

"I swear to God, if I got sick too..."

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks so much for reading! Kudos are appreciated and if you leave a comment, I'll be forever in your debt.


End file.
